The Orange Monster

Calpol

Decided to build up a winter bike, an N+1 a bridge to my next indulgence.
Have been riding my Wilier Izoard for 18 months now and I have loved it. I am determined to keep riding over the next few months so opted to build up something else that I don't mind getting exposed to the poorer weather and road conditions. So I have stripped the Izoard and transferred most of the kit over to a new frame. It was my first time building a bike so I learned a lot!

Frame/Fork/Seatpost - Dengfu FM029
Groupset - Campagnolo Veloce
Chainset - Wilier/FSA
Wheels - Fulcrum Racing 5
Tyres - Conti Gatorskins
Bars - 3T Ergonova
Tape - Fizik

Got the frame painted by dengfu as I wanted something that was a bit different. It will not be to everyone's taste but I quite like it. Not sure about decals.

Finished the build last night and it wasn't too stressful. Made a few mistakes but its not too shoddy. Have only managed 15 miles on it so far but it seems quite nice. Need to cut a bit more off the steerer and trim the gears a bit but all in all I am quite pleased. The bike actually feels lighter than the Izoard and I think slightly stiffer, and thats with the Fulcrum Wheels vs the much lighter Soul S3.0s

Plan is to ride it for the next few months then think about putting a new Groupset on the Izoard. Although I am a bit worried that I might want a better frame next year :-(

not-another-hillǃ

Looks cool....so glad you didn't go all "stealth"...........

Enjoy!

diamonddog

Looks good, don't envy the white bits for winter though.

awsm

You Monster. Nice build you did on her

buzzwold

Looking good Calpol. Is it but does the shape of the frame remind anyone of some well known low cost UK suppliers frames?

Camcycle1974

buzzwold wrote:

Looking good Calpol. Is it but does the shape of the frame remind anyone of some well known low cost UK suppliers frames?

It does bear a resemblance to the Ribble 872. Different round the head tube and chain stays though.

slowandsteady

First time wrapping bars?

i really like it, how much does a frame like that come in at painted and delivered?

FransJacques

Finish looks great in the pix - is it flawless in person or what?

Who did it, the factory?

Does it ride nicely, what are you comparing it to?

Calpol

FransJacques wrote:

Finish looks great in the pix - is it flawless in person or what?

Who did it, the factory?

Does it ride nicely, what are you comparing it to?

Dengfu painted it I asked them to match a colour from a bike I had seen. The finish is pretty good. There is a slight bubble on the right fork but no other flaws. I don't think it will as durable as some as maybe only one coat of clear coat. Here are a couple of closer pics

Inspiration


Dengfu render - I added the black bits and asked them to leave as carbon finish


Close up frame



Only put 50 odd miles on it so too early for a detailed review but its plenty stiff and pretty light even with the Fulcrums. Still tweaking the set up but I think it will be pretty good compared to My Wilier Izoard. First impressions are that its stiffer and slightly more responsive but also a slightly harsher ride.

Slowandsteady wrote:

First time wrapping bars?

I really like it, how much does a frame like that come in at painted and delivered?

Yep I cocked that bar tape up a bit. I might do it again. Total cost delivered and painted was £370 (includes seatpost and headset). The good thing is that you can spec whatever colour you want pretty much.

Camcycle1974

Close up that's really a nice, clean frame. Colour not my cup of tea but at least it's different!

Iamnot Wiggins

I'm liking that colour. And, you need to re-tape those bars!

buzzwold

Calpol wrote:

FransJacques wrote:

Finish looks great in the pix - is it flawless in person or what?

Who did it, the factory?

Does it ride nicely, what are you comparing it to?

Dengfu painted it I asked them to match a colour from a bike I had seen. The finish is pretty good. There is a slight bubble on the right fork but no other flaws. I don't think it will as durable as some as maybe only one coat of clear coat. Here are a couple of closer pics

Inspiration


Dengfu render - I added the black bits and asked them to leave as carbon finish


Close up frame



Only put 50 odd miles on it so too early for a detailed review but its plenty stiff and pretty light even with the Fulcrums. Still tweaking the set up but I think it will be pretty good compared to My Wilier Izoard. First impressions are that its stiffer and slightly more responsive but also a slightly harsher ride.

Slowandsteady wrote:

First time wrapping bars?

I really like it, how much does a frame like that come in at painted and delivered?

Yep I cocked that bar tape up a bit. I might do it again. Total cost delivered and painted was £370 (includes seatpost and headset). The good thing is that you can spec whatever colour you want pretty much.

I guess time will tell as with most materials it's the bits that you can't see that will make the difference. I wonder what the cost would be from a Taiwanese factory who supposedly are the go to place with the best quality output.

Still nice bike. You should have thought up your own brand for it.

buzzwold

diamonddog wrote:

Looks good, don't envy the white bits for winter though.

I love white bar tape. There's a good youtube vid on cleaning white tape.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4ByTa7yPJc

RideOnTime

yeah it grows with looking...

matt_cartlidge

Any updates on this? Are you still happy with it?

Looks great btw!

tlw1

I love the look of that

Calpol

matt_cartlidge wrote:

Any updates on this? Are you still happy with it?

Looks great btw!

Thanks for that. I have put about 500 miles on it so far. I like it. The colour was a bit of gamble but It has really grown on me. You don't see many bikes in that hue. With regard the ride. Its difficult to discern huge differences between that and my Wilier. The Wilier is probably more comfortable due to the taller head tube and I would say it is a slightly smoother ride. On the other hand the FM029 feels lighter (even with heavy Fulcrum 5 wheels), it feels stiffer and more responsive if you are out of the saddle. For me it has given me a bit of a dilemma for when spring comes around. The original plan was to buy a new groupo for the Wilier but I am now in two minds as to whether or not it warrants it - there honestly is not a lot between the two frames.

In terms of negatives on the FM029
- The supplied headset is ok but i suspect there are better out the
- the paint finish is good but not clearcoated and finished as well as a branded bike. I chipped the TT hanging it up in the garage

I honestly can't think of anything else though. I would buy another chinese frame - for value I don't think they can be beaten at this stage. I guess Planet x are on a par but you can't custom paint a P-x and a load of people are riding them.

I might explore getting a new fork for the Wilier as a cheaper way of breathing life into it unless I get a decent bonus in April and can afford a new frame

matt_cartlidge

Thanks for the detailed response thinking about getting one of these frames, did you buy direct from dengfu or via aliexpress or eBay?

Calpol

matt_cartlidge wrote:

Thanks for the detailed response thinking about getting one of these frames, did you buy direct from dengfu or via aliexpress or eBay?

When I ordered the Dengfu website was down so I went through their store on Ali express. Good comms with them.